Catholic News

The archbishop of Toledo and primate of Spain, Francisco Cerro, said it is not uncommon to be asked "what the secret is" behind the vitality of his seminary, which for decades has had one of the highest enrollments in the country.

Cerro noted that questions about the seminary's success lead him and his team to live in "profound humility and sincere gratitude" for what God has granted them through "the heart of Jesus Christ, eternal high priest," both for the good of the Church and for "a humanity incapable of finding a way back to the Lord, marked by apostasy and, above all, weary and burdened because it lacks the Love of loves."

In a recent letter, Cerro offered 10 points he said have shaped the seminary's strong vocation culture — points "strengthened by the pastors who have served this primatial see, watered by the blood of martyrs, and sustained by the witness of holiness of so many lives."

1. "Reasons of faith"

"We enter the seminary for reasons of faith, not for human reasons, and we remain for reasons of faith," explained the prelate, who — drawing inspiration from the words Pope Leo XIV addressed to Spanish seminarians in February — added that "when we lose the supernatural dimension of our vocation, we lose everything."

2. The Church confirms the vocation

Cerro explained that "in the seminary, the vocation — which we place in the hands of the Church — is discerned." Thus, priestly ordination "takes place when that call has been confirmed by the Church, which is the body of Christ."

3. A transformed heart

The archbishop of Toledo, recalling his days as a seminarian, said: "I must allow the seminary to pass through me, to enter deep within me, and to gradually form and transform me. Formation must help us to live with the sentiments of the heart of Jesus. We cannot be like those smooth stones we see in mountain rivers: The water flows over them, but it does not penetrate their interior."

4. Human, not worldly

Another factor contributing to the success of the Toledo seminary is awareness of having "seminarians who are deeply human, yet not at all worldly," Cerro said, men who share in "the joys, hopes, sorrows, and anxieties of our brothers," for "the world awaits holy priests who know how to accompany people on the journey of life."

5. Solid in-depth formation

The prelate said the Toledo seminary offers "solid in-depth formation," grounded in the magisterium of the Church, "so as not to turn our seminaries into a laboratory for all manner of experiments, the outcome of which we all know."

6. Based on the word of God and the lives of the saints

"Based on the living word, on the doctrine of the Church, on the experience of the saints, and in dialogue with a world that needs the Redeemer of the world more than ever" — this is how the formation process is carried out, the prelate emphasized.

7. Living in the present

Cerro said the seminary approaches its work "without nostalgia for a past that will not return. With eyes of faith, living in the present in communion with Peter, we form ourselves to live out what is essential: to be holy and blameless before God out of love."

8. Fraternity and unity in diversity

"The seminary — as a presbyterate in formation — must be a community that lives like a family," the prelate added, "for this fraternity strengthens that which unites us, enabling us to live with one heart while respecting the healthy plurality of sensibilities that reaffirm one faith, one baptism, and one Lord, in communion with Peter in [Christ's] Church."

9. Devoted to Mary

"We place the seminary in the heart of the Immaculate One. She watches over every seminarian so that he may attain the goal of a life of priestly dedication and generosity," the archbishop shared.

10. Entrusted to the saints and martyrs

Finally, Cerro said he considers the final characteristic of the seminary is that it is entrusted to "St. Ildefonsus, to Blessed Sancha, and to so many holy pastors who have passed through it" as well as "to the martyrs of the religious persecution in Spain."

He appealed to them to "grant us many holy vocations, so that the Church journeying in Toledo may never lack pastors after the heart of Christ."

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Though the Indian Hindu nationalist government was prepared to discuss a controversial amendment on foreign donations in the Indian Parliament on April 1, vociferous opposition protests inside the legislature, along with public opposition — including by Catholic Church leadership — forced the government to postpone the bill until the next session in July.

The BJP government's backing-off from the amendment to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act was promptly welcomed by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI).

The CBCI had mailed a protest letter on March 31 to Amit Shah, the home minister of India who handles the sensitive subject of foreign donations, calling for the "referral of the Bill to a Parliamentary Standing Committee for wider consultation"

The bill provides for setting up a government authority to seize properties bought or developed on foreign funds if the government license is canceled or not renewed.

The CBCI letter argued that it was essential "to ensure that administrative lapses do not lead to disproportionate penalties such as asset seizure."

With the Christian heartland of southern Kerala going to the polls on April 9 to choose its new assembly, ruling Communists and opposition leaders joined senior bishops holding news conferences dubbing the amendment as "draconian, barbaric and undemocratic."

The Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council held an emergency online meeting March 31 and sent a powerful letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing "deep concern regarding certain provisions" within the proposed amendment

"The amendments, as presently understood, may create possibilities for misuse of authority, which could adversely impact many voluntary organizations, non-governmental organizations, and auxiliary institutions — including places of worship — that have been established over decades for public service, irrespective of caste or religion," the Kerala bishops cautioned.

More than 18% of Kerala's 37 million residents are Christians.

The bishops asked Modi to refer the amendment bill "to the appropriate Parliamentary Subject Committee for further study, stakeholder consultation, and detailed discussion."

"We are relieved now that the bill has been postponed and it will certainly provide an opportunity to address our concerns," Father Thomas Tharayil, the deputy secretary of the Kerala bishops, told EWTN News April 2 from Kochi.

Contribution act licenses of several dioceses, congregations and charitable organizations have been "cancelled without any proper reason," Tharayil said.

Since the BJP came into power in 2014, thousands of licenses of church and Christian social action groups have been cancelled or not renewed along with those of secular advocacy groups, including international nonprofits like Amnesty International, Bread for the World and Greenpeace.

The FCRA Online dashboard of the government gives details of the curbing of the license with nearly two-thirds of around 50,000 accounts either cancelled or not renewed.

The BJP government in 2020, meanwhile, made it mandatory that all licensees  open a designated "FCRA Account" only at the main New Delhi branch of the government-controlled State Bank of India.

An online campaign to revise the controversial bill has drawn thousands of signatures. The campaign argues that foreign donations "play a crucial role in supporting development projects in India, with billions of dollars in aid helping to alleviate poverty, support education, and improve public health."

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Archbishop for the Military Services, USA Timothy Broglio said this week that the ongoing U.S.-Iran war doesn't seem to be legitimate under a just war theory, with the prelate admitting that while military intelligence may have additional information unknown to the public, it was nevertheless "hard" to see how the war could be justified.

The archbishop, who also served as the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2022 to 2025, made the remarks during an interview with Ed O'Keefe on CBS News's "Face the Nation," set to air on April 5.

O'Keefe during the interview highlighted Saint Augustine's theory of "just war" in which the ancient theologian pointed out that "the causes for which men undertake wars" must be grounded in both peace and necessity. The journalist asked if the Iran war could be justified under that doctrine.

"I would think under the just war theory, it is not," the archbishop said. "Because while there was a threat with nuclear arms, [the war is] compensating for a threat before [the threat itself] is actually realized."

"I would line myself up with Pope Leo, who has been urging for negotiation," Broglio continued. "I realize also that you could say, well, with whom are you going to negotiate? And that is a problem."

"But in the meantime, lives are being lost, both there and also among troops," he said. "So it is a concern."

On March 31 Pope Leo XIV appealed for world peace amid multiple conflicts throughout the Middle East, urging the faithful to pray "for the victims of war ... that there may truly be a new, renewed peace, which can give new life to all."

Earlier, on Palm Sunday, the Holy Father spoke out more strongly against global conflict, arguing that God "does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war."

In his interview on CBS, Broglio pointed to remarks in October of 1965 by then-Pope Paul VI, who in addressing the United Nations decried the "blood of millions" resulting from numerous global conflicts, telling the international body: "Never again war, never again war!"

"Now, so many years later, we're still in this situation," Broglio said. "So I think Pope Leo would definitely support saying that, you know, we have to find a situation where men and women can sit down and find avenues of peace."

"I think war is always a last resort," the archbishop said during the interview.

In January, amid overtures by the U.S. to potentially invade Greenland, Broglio in an interview with the BBC expressed concern that soldiers might be "put in a situation where they're being ordered to do something that is morally questionable."

Speaking to CBS, the prelate acknowledged that a soldier in the military "has to obey [an order] unless it's clearly immoral."

"And then he would probably have to speak to his chaplain, to his chain of command," the archbishop said. "The question might be, would generals or admirals have space to perhaps say, can we look at this a different way?"

"But having spoken to some of them too, they're also in the same dilemma," he said. "So I guess my counsel would be to do as little harm as you can, and to try and preserve innocent lives."

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The Supreme Court will clarify how IQ scores should be evaluated when a death sentence is barred based on an intellectual disability.

The court already ruled in 2002, in Atkins v. Virginia, that executing people with intellectual disabilities violated the Constitution's Eighth Amendment, which prohibits "cruel and unusual punishment," but justices did not define intellectual disability.

In Hamm v. Smith, the court will consider whether Joseph Smith, facing execution in Alabama for the 1998 murder of Durk Van Dam, should be spared because his IQ test scores hover so closely to the threshold of 70 established in the Atkins case. Smith was given several IQ tests ranging from 72 to 78, above the standard threshold of 70, but within the margin of error.

"As long as the death penalty remains on the books in this country, it is essential that these guardrails are upheld to safeguard the most vulnerable among us, including those with intellectual disabilities," said Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, executive director of the Catholic Mobilizing Network, an anti-death penalty group based in Washington, D.C. "The surest way to protect the sanctity of life in these instances is to end the practice of capital punishment altogether."

In 2018, Pope Francis updated paragraph 2267 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, declaring the death penalty "inadmissible" because "it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person." Pope Leo XIV affirmed this, saying that those who are against abortion must also be against capital punishment as they both degrade human life.

Vaillancourt Murphy said the death penalty is more unpopular than ever, mostly because of "young adults who, by and large, oppose the death penalty far more than their older counterparts."

Oral arguments in the case were heard in December 2025. Eighteen states and the Trump administration filed briefs supporting Alabama.

Assistant to the U.S. Solicitor General Harry Graver told the justices that the court's ruling in Atkins had "outsourced the definition of intellectual ability to the states," giving them "significant discretion in defining what it means to be intellectually disabled and what a defendant must do to prove it."

Theresa Farnan, a philosopher on the Ethics and Public Policy Committee of the National Catholic Partnership on Disability, said several conditions should be evaluated to determine an inmate's intellectual ability outside of IQ tests, including their social adaptability and early childhood performance.

"This was clearly a borderline case," Farnan said, noting that Smith could not finish grade school, struggled with reading, and could not keep jobs created for special needs employees. "It's obvious to me he could not grasp the gravity of his crimes. In cases like these, the burden on us as a society is even more pronounced to be radically pro-life."

She said the court may establish a legal precedent in this case in which these holistic evaluations will be used by states in assessing intellectual fitness.

The American Psychological Association with the American Psychiatric Association and the Alabama Psychological Association argued in their amicus briefs that diagnosing intellectual disability requires a comprehensive clinical assessment that goes beyond just IQ test scores. Their briefs clarified that IQ tests are not always definitive.

A decision is expected by July.

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Pope Leo XIV urged the faithful to "live our lives as a journey" and prayed for the Church to "follow in the footprints" of Christ as he walked the Via Crucis on April 3.

The pope personally carried the cross through every station of the Good Friday Way of the Cross at the Colosseum, the first time in four years the figure of the Supreme Pontiff has been present at the amphitheater.

Due to health concerns, Pope Francis last participated in person at the Colosseum in 2022, appearing via video after that.

Leo told media earlier in the week that the event "will be an important sign, given what the pope represents: a spiritual leader in today's world — a voice to proclaim that Christ still suffers."

"And I, too, carry all of this suffering in my prayers," the pope said.

The Via Crucis meditations for 2026 were written by Father Francesco Patton, the former Custos of the Holy Land. The reflections noted that "every authority must answer before God for the manner in which it exercises the power it has received," including "the power to initiate a war or to end it" and "the power to trample upon human dignity or to safeguard it."

"Each one of us, too, is called to answer for the power we exercise in our daily lives," the meditations said.

At the conclusion of the Way of the Cross, the pope quoted Saint Francis of Assisi in praying that God would "give us miserable ones the grace to do for you alone what we know you want us to do and always to desire what pleases you."

"Inwardly cleansed, interiorly enlightened and inflamed by the fire of the Holy Spirit, may we be able to follow in the footprints of your beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ," the pope prayed.

This story was originally published by ACI Stampa, EWTN News' Italian-language partner agency. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Pope Leo XIV urged the faithful to "live our lives as a journey" and prayed for the Church to "follow in the footprints" of Christ as he walked the Via Crucis on April 3.

The pope personally carried the cross through every station of the Good Friday Way of the Cross at the Colosseum, the first time in four years the figure of the Supreme Pontiff has been present at the amphitheater.

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The Catholic revival that Paris has been experiencing over the past five years continues unabated, even amid the city's long-running status as a symbol of European secularization.

On the night of the Easter Vigil, April 4, more than 700 adults across the French capital will be received into the Catholic Church as part of a sudden nationwide surge.

Across France, more than 13,000 adults will be baptized this Easter, according to data released by the French Bishops' Conference — an increase of 28% compared with 2025.

The "boom" in adult baptisms in France is a relatively recent phenomenon. It has intensified over the past decade, with a marked acceleration following the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching record levels since 2024.

Within this national picture, Paris stands out as a beating heart of such renewal. According to figures provided by the archdiocese, 788 adult catechumens will be baptized in the city during the Easter Vigil, a 17% increase from the previous year.

These baptisms will take place across 94 parishes and several communities, mobilizing more than 1,000 accompanying members, mostly laypeople. The age distribution is characterized by a predominance of younger people, with nearly one-third under the age of 25, about half between the ages of 26 and 40, and 1 in 5 over the age of 40, with candidates ranging in age from 18 to 73.

Women remain the majority among catechumens, accounting for 58% in Paris, a proportion consistent with national patterns.

The list of Parisian parishes with particularly high numbers of catechumens reveals a landscape that cuts across ecclesial sensibilities and social geographies. Parishes where the Traditional Latin Mass is regularly celebrated such as Saint-Roch in the 1st arrondissement or Saint-Eugène Sainte-Cécile (9th) stand alongside parishes in more working-class or mixed neighborhoods, including Notre-Dame de Clignancourt (18th), Notre-Dame de la Gare (13th), or Saint-Ambroise (11th).

Many of these communities, often led by young and dynamic clergy, have become vibrant centers of parish life.

Robin, a 30-year-old catechumen preparing to be baptized at Saint-Ambroise this Saturday, embodies this trend. Raised in a nonbelieving family with no religious background, he began his spiritual journey through a gradual process of questioning the purpose of life. 

"In a world where everything moves so fast, where we lose sight of what matters, the Church has done me a world of good," he told EWTN News. "It has helped me put the 'why' back at the center of everything."

His path has been shaped by a growing desire for silence and contemplation as well as a yearning for beauty. "I would go to churches to find a moment of calm, where time would stop," he explained. "I was looking for a place where you can listen to yourself and reflect on what you want to do with your life."

"What moves me deeply," he added, "is the beauty that surrounds my church — its architecture, its music… that's where I feel something powerful."

Like many catechumens, Robin described an experience of welcome that proved decisive. At an early stage in his journey, he met a young parish priest who, despite a busy schedule, took the time to speak with him.

"We talked for an hour. It was incredibly reassuring," he recalled. He was then introduced to a group of parishioners who accompanied him throughout his catechumenate, forming what he describes as a "deep bond of humanity."

This communal dimension appears to be a key factor in the current surge. While the French model of catechumenate has traditionally been more individual, the growing number of candidates is prompting parishes to rethink their approach, often favoring group dynamics that foster a sense of belonging from the outset.

Many catechumens come from families with little or no Christian background, reflecting a broader shift from cultural Catholicism toward a more deliberate, conviction-based faith. On a national level, the number of catechumens identifying as having no religious tradition now represent a proportion comparable with those from Christian backgrounds.

The scale of the phenomenon is now prompting serious reflection among French Church leaders. In response to the steady increase in adult baptisms, the eight dioceses of the Île-de-France region, together with the Diocese for the Armed Forces, have convened a provincial council set to open on May 31 at Notre-Dame Cathedral.

Under the theme "Catechumens and Neophytes: New Perspectives for the Life of Our Church," the council will seek to discern how local structures and pastoral practices should adapt to this unexpected growth.

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DHAKA, Bangladesh — In an industrial district 20 miles from Bangladesh's capital, Catholic migrant workers who cannot travel home for Easter are keeping the faith alive — staging a living Way of the Cross on Good Friday at a church center established for their spiritual care.

About 200 Catholics gathered April 3 at the Jesus Worker Center in the Zirani area of Gazipur to watch fellow parishioners dramatize the 14 stations, from the condemnation of Jesus to his burial and resurrection.

The participants — young men, women, and elderly Catholics who work in nearby factories — performed the reenactment at the center, which serves roughly 1,700 Catholics scattered across the surrounding industrial zone.

Binodh Bless Mardy, 28, is one of them. An Indigenous Catholic, Mardy has worked at E.O.S. Textile Mills Limited for about eight years. He tries to join the Christian community in his free time and took part in the Good Friday reenactment as a narrator.

"Since I don't get much time off during Easter and my home is far away, I try to attend all the Easter Sunday events here instead of going to my village," Mardy told EWTN News.

Mardy's home village is about 250 miles away, in Dinajpur Diocese in northern Bangladesh.

He said he is not always able to attend Mass during Holy Week before Easter. "When I get time off, I don't always get to Mass. And when I try to get time off, I can't always manage it. So I pray at home," he said.

A center for Catholic workers

The Jesus Worker Center was established in 2009 by the Archdiocese of Dhaka for the spiritual care of Catholics working in the area's garment factories and other private industries. About 1,700 Catholics live in different neighborhoods under the center's pastoral reach.

Father Biswajit Bormon, assistant parish priest at the center, said he and three other priests provide spiritual care to Catholic workers across a 20-square-kilometer (about 7.7-square-mile) area.

"Laborers come here from different parts of Bangladesh and work in different companies. Most of them do not get Sunday off, so we give them more time on Fridays," Bormon said.

During Lent, the priests visit at least seven subcenter locations to offer Mass and hear confessions. They celebrate as many of the Holy Week liturgies as possible across the area.

"Where seven or eight families can gather in a place, the priests go and celebrate the Mass and take care of them spiritually. And those who are around the center come to the center. The Way of the Living Cross is staged by those around the center," Bormon said.

'The joy of celebrating with family'

Milon Kormokar has worked in the Zirani area for about 15 years and currently works for Rahimafrooz, a Bangladeshi industrial company. He lives in a rented house with his wife and two children.

Kormokar does not go home for Easter. His home parish is the cathedral parish of the Diocese of Rajshahi, about 190 miles from Zirani — a six- to seven-hour bus journey.

His company gives one day of personal leave, but that is not enough to travel home, so he celebrates Easter at the center instead.

"There are many of us Christians here; we celebrate Easter Sunday with them, but the joy of celebrating with our families is not available with others," Kormokar said.

"Priests work very hard to take care of us spiritually. They often go door to door to check on the families, pray, and hear confessions," Kormokar told EWTN News.

Beyond spiritual care

The center's mission extends beyond sacraments. The priests also assist Catholics who are sick and help arrange accommodation for new arrivals in the area. A day care center at the Jesus Worker Center allows Catholic parents to leave their children in care while they work.

Bangladesh's roughly 600,000 Christians make up less than 1% of the country's approximately 178 million people. The Catholic community, with about 400,000 members, is the single-largest Christian group and includes a large proportion from the country's Indigenous communities.

Both Mardy and Kormokar said they believe the Church should advocate the government to declare at least two days of public holiday around Easter so that Christians who work far from home can travel to spend the feast with their families.

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VATICAN — Pope Leo XIV presided over the Celebration of the Lord's Passion in St. Peter's Basilica on Good Friday during which the preacher of the papal household exhorted Christians to "approach the Lord's cross without fear."

The liturgy began with the pope lying prostrate before the cross and then unfolded in three parts: the Liturgy of the Word, veneration of the cross, and Holy Communion.

There was no opening antiphon; the solemn liturgy began with silent prayer, the unifying thread through the entire celebration.

After the proclamation of the Gospel of John's account of Christ's passion, the papal preacher, Father Roberto Pasolini, OFMCap, delivered a homily.

'The greatest act of love'

"In a time like ours, still torn apart by hatred and violence, when even the name of God is invoked to justify wars and deadly decisions, we Christians are called to approach the Lord's Cross without fear — indeed, with full trust — knowing that it is a throne upon which one sits and learns to reign with him by placing one's life at the service of others," Pasolini said.

"If we can hold fast to the profession of this faith, then our days too will be able to give voice to the songs of both joy and suffering, that mysterious score of the Cross in which the notes of the greatest love can be clearly recognized," he continued.

The preacher recalled that the day's liturgy invites Catholics to contemplate the Passion: "Yet the Cross of Christ risks remaining incomprehensible if we look at it only as an isolated fact, as a sudden event. In reality, it is the highest point of a journey, the fulfillment of an entire life in which Jesus learned to listen to and welcome the voice of the Father, allowing himself to be guided day by day all the way to the greatest act of love."

"Jesus is the man of sorrows who knows suffering well — no violence, no resort to force, no temptation to destroy everything and start over from scratch. We know how difficult it is to embrace such a mission. We are tempted to use aggression and violence, thinking that without them nothing can ever be resolved. But only meekness is the true strength for confronting the darkness of evil," he continued.

Example of the Servant Songs

In his homily, Pasolini referred to the Servant Songs, four poetic texts found in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah (42, 49, 50, 52–53), which describe a mysterious figure — the "Servant"— who fulfills God's will through vicarious suffering.

"To understand this journey during the days of Holy Week, the liturgy has had us listen to the so-called Songs of the Servant of the Lord. These are poetic texts in which the prophet Isaiah sketched the figure of a mysterious servant through whom God would be able to save the world from evil and sin. Christian tradition has recognized in these songs a striking and dramatic foreshadowing," Pasolini explained.

"In the third song, a new surprise emerges: The servant wants to help, but people respond with anger and violence," Pasolini said. "Those who live in darkness do not always welcome the light, because the light also exposes what we would prefer to keep hidden — our wounds, our ambiguities."

"In the fourth song, something deeply unsettling occurs: The violence inflicted on the servant is so intense that it disfigures his face. He has no appearance or beauty, yet the servant has learned not to return the evil he has received," the preacher said.

The servant "does not resign himself to this logic [of violence]; he absorbs everything without retaliating. For this reason, he bore the sin of many," the priest explained.

For the papal preacher, the Lord Jesus "did not merely listen to these songs; he lived them intensely, with complete trust in the Father."

"We see it constantly in wars, in divisions, in wounds: evil keeps circulating because it always finds someone willing to pass it on. Jesus broke this chain by accepting what happened to him. In the Passion, he recognized the score of the songs of love and service that the Father had entrusted to him. In this way, he learned the most difficult obedience — the obedience of loving the other," Pasolini continued.

"The voice of God no longer guides us — not because it has disappeared, but because it has become just one voice among many, the others promising security and well-being," he said.

"What is missing is a word, a song capable of guiding our steps toward a more just world," he added. "And yet, if we look closely, we can glimpse a silent crowd of people who choose a different voice — a voice that does not shout, that does not impose itself by force, a quiet and persistent song that invites us to love and never return evil for evil. They do not perform extraordinary deeds, but each day they try to make their lives serve not only themselves, but others as well."

'Lay down the weapons'

Referencing the act of venerating the cross, Pasolini encouraged those present to use the opportunity to "lay down the weapons" they are holding.

"They may not seem as dangerous as those wielded by the powerful of this world. Yet they, too, are instruments of death, because they are enough to weaken, wound, and drain meaning and love from our daily relationships," he said.

"Salvation will not drop down from above, nor can it be guaranteed by political, economic, or military decisions. The world is constantly being saved by those who are willing to embrace the Songs of the Servant of the Lord as the shape of their own lives," the preacher encouraged.

"This is what the Lord Jesus did. He took the Father's will seriously, accepting it as a score to be carried out to the end, with loud cries and tears."

"Tonight we too are handed the score of the cross. We can freely accept it if we acknowledge that there is no difficulty that cannot be faced, no guilty party we must point to, no enemy who can prevent us from loving and serving."

"There is only ourselves — who, by choosing not to return evil, by remaining patient in trials, by believing in good even when darkness seems to swallow everything, can become day by day those servants the Lord needs to bring salvation into the world," he said.

This story was originally published by ACI Stampa, EWTN News' Italian-language partner agency. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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VILNIUS, Lithuania — On the northern edge of Lithuania's capital, pilgrims walk a 7-kilometer (4.3-mile) route known as Vilnius Calvary, a landscape of chapels, gates, hills, and a small bridge designed to reflect the topography and distances of Jerusalem's Way of the Cross.

At the center of the route stands the Church of the Discovery of the Holy Cross, located in the city's Jeruzale (Jerusalem) neighborhood. Unlike the familiar 14 Stations of the Cross found in many Catholic parishes, Vilnius Calvary leads pilgrims through 35 stations, making it one of Europe's largest outdoor Stations of the Cross ensembles.

A Lithuanian 'Jerusalem' built for pilgrims

The devotion of the Stations of the Cross, strongly promoted across Europe through Franciscan tradition, developed in part as a spiritual alternative for Christians unable to make the long, costly, and dangerous journey to the Holy Land.

Vilnius Calvary gave that tradition a local form by integrating prayer with geography: Pilgrims walk a route laid across hills and valleys, with places bearing biblical names creating a pilgrimage experience shaped by movement as well as meditation.

In practice, planners modeled the route using pilgrimage accounts, devotional guides, early maps of Jerusalem, and traditions preserved by the Franciscans, who long served as custodians of holy sites in the Holy Land. These descriptions were then adapted to Vilnius' natural landscape so that pilgrims could experience the Via Dolorosa not only through prayer but also through the physical rhythm of walking, ascent, and pause.

Founded in gratitude

Vilnius Calvary took shape in the late 17th century following the wars that brought severe destruction to Vilnius and the surrounding region. At the time, Vilnius belonged to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and was seized during the mid-1600s conflicts involving Muscovite (tsarist Russian) forces. Lithuanian forces and their allies later recaptured the city, and Church leaders established the Calvary as a public act of thanksgiving for the restoration of the capital.

The project was initiated by Vilnius Bishop Jurgis Bialozoras, who allocated roughly 140 hectares of land from his Verkiai Manor estate to build a church, various chapels, and the pilgrimage path. The area was chosen because its terrain allowed for a symbolic "Jerusalem" in Lithuania: Hills were assigned biblical names such as Golgotha, Zion, and the Mount of Olives, while a nearby stream recalled the Kidron Valley.

The church and the Way of the Cross were solemnly consecrated on June 9, 1669, on the feast of Pentecost.

Why 35 stations of the cross?

The 35-station structure reflects an older "Passion route" tradition in which the devotion extends beyond the standard 14 stations. In such traditions, the pilgrimage includes additional moments associated with Christ's final hours as well as devotional scenes linked to the Church's meditation on the Passion.

In Vilnius Calvary, the route begins not with Christ's condemnation but reaches back to earlier moments of the Passion, including the Last Supper, Christ's journey toward the Mount of Olives, and his interrogation before Annas and Caiaphas.

The pilgrimage then continues through the later stages of the Passion and extends beyond the Crucifixion. It also draws meaning from the church's title, the Discovery of the Holy Cross, linking the devotion not only to Christ's suffering but  also to the Church's proclamation of the cross as the source of salvation.

Destruction and rebuilding

For centuries, Vilnius Calvary served as a major site of popular devotion, especially at Pentecost, when large crowds traditionally gathered for prayer and preaching along the route.

The site was damaged during the Napoleonic Wars, when French forces occupied the Verkiai forest area and used the church as a barracks and a hospital. Some chapels were damaged, and the church was plundered during the army's retreat following their failed invasion of Russia.

The most severe destruction came under Soviet rule. In 1962, communist authorities demolished most of the chapels, leaving only a small number of structures nearest the church intact.

After Lithuania regained independence in 1990, reconstruction began. The restored chapels were solemnly blessed again at Pentecost in 2002. Over roughly a decade, the ensemble was rebuilt with 16 masonry chapels, seven wooden gates, one masonry gate, and a bridge structure, restoring the route as a full pilgrimage path.

The church at the center of the pilgrimage

The Church of the Discovery of the Holy Cross is not simply a landmark along the route. It is also the spiritual center of the ensemble and the culmination of the pilgrimage. Its position on a high hill is intended to correspond symbolically to Golgotha, and the main altar, dedicated to the crucified Christ, is treated as the central devotional point of the Way of the Cross.

The church also contains an 18th-century silver gilded reliquary containing a relic of the holy cross, which is decorated with rhinestones.

A living devotion in modern Vilnius

Vilnius Calvary remains active as a place of prayer. The route is used throughout the year for organized Stations of the Cross, including regular Friday devotions and monthly pilgrimages. The Secular Franciscans in Vilnius also unite their prayer with the Franciscans in Jerusalem, reflecting the devotion's historical connection to the Holy Land.

Elzbieta Uckuronyte, a lifelong parishioner at the church, told EWTN News that the Stations of the Cross at Vilnius Calvary had become deeply personal to her over time.

"The first time I went, I didn't fully understand it," she said. "But as my faith has grown, I've come to see the value in the discomfort — kneeling on stones, walking in rain or snow, crossing hills and streams. It isn't easy, but it reflects the hardship Christ endured, and there is a quiet beauty in that."

For many pilgrims, Vilnius Calvary offers something rare in a modern European capital: a sustained Passion pilgrimage shaped not only by texts and stations but also by distance, landscape, and public religious memory.

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